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Rippavilla to observe anniversary of Battle of Spring Hill Nov. 29

Rippavilla to observe anniversary of Battle of Spring Hill Nov. 29

Andrew Sherriff, Rippavilla Civil War historian, will lead a guided battlefield tour on Nov. 29 to commemorate the Battle of Spring Hill on Nov. 29, 1864. Guests will climb aboard a hay wagon and ride to different vistas on the battlefield. At various stops along the route, Sherriff will point out locations where Confederate troops were positioned on that fateful day.

Special to The Herald

Special to The Herald

SPRING HILL — Every year on Nov. 29, Rippavilla hosts a candlelight tour commemorating the Battle of Spring Hill known to many as one of the biggest military blunders of the Civil War.

The Union army under the command of Maj. Gen. John M. Schofield slipped past the Confederate forces in Spring Hill on Nov. 29, 1864. The following morning, after receiving news that the Federal Army escaped his trap, Confederate Commander, Lt. Gen. John Bell Hood ordered his senior officers to meet at Rippavilla for a breakfast meeting. According to published research, the breakfast quickly turned into a “heated exchange” with Hood ordering his army to march to Franklin where one of the bloodiest battles in the conflict occurred later that day.

Based on last year’s success, visitors will enjoy a guided battlefield tour and a candlelight tour of the first floor of the Cheairs home. Guided by Andrew Sherriff, Rippavilla Civil War historian, guests will climb aboard the hay wagon and ride to different vistas on the battlefield. At various stops along the route, Sherriff will point out locations where Confederate troops were positioned on Nov. 29, 1864. After the battlefield tour, visitors will proceed into the mansion and hear first-person accounts from Susan Cheairs’ collection of personal correspondence and diary describing encounters with both Union and Confederate Armies. The house tour will end in the original dining room where Hood issued the orders for the Battle of Franklin.

Offering the guided battlefield tour in the late afternoon to early evening provides visitors a realistic interpretation of the Confederate encampments and the Union’s march northward to Franklin as many historians believe that most of both armies’ maneuvers took place shortly after sunset on Nov. 29.

Two tours will be offered — the first at 5 p.m. and the second at 7 p.m. regardless of weather. Visitors are encouraged to dress accordingly and bring a flashlight.

The stately mansion will be illuminated by candlelight giving visitors a unique experience. The house tour for this special event is limited to the first floor only.

Admission for the annual event is $10 per person for ages 13-61. Ages 62-up are charged $8 per person and children, ages 6-12, are charged $5 per person. Members of the Rippavilla Plantations Society receive a 20 percent discount on admission. Reservations are not required.

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